


Bucky's Little Green House

by kitmistress



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes Needs a Hug, Depression, Fluff with feelings, Goats, M/M, Pillow & Blanket Forts, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Service Animals, Shuri is the QUEEN, Steve Rogers Has PTSD, animals do too, plants help depression
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-10
Updated: 2019-04-10
Packaged: 2020-01-05 00:59:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18355346
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kitmistress/pseuds/kitmistress
Summary: Steve wanted to groan, he wanted to but wouldn’t. It was making Bucky feel better. But the plants were getting a little crazy.Bucky has bad and good days. Steve tries to stay strong for Bucky but sometimes also has bad days. Between Bucky's plants and Shuri's "helpful" visits, Steve is sure they will all be fine.





	Bucky's Little Green House

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a random piece that would not leave my head, I don't care if it is compliant with Civil war or not, but they are in Wakanda (so I guess it kinda has to be compliant....). They just want to be happy ok!?  
> On that note Enjoy!

Steve wanted to groan. He wanted to, but wouldn’t. It was making Bucky feel better. But the plants were getting a little crazy. There were 6 in the bathroom alone!

Make that 7.

“Bucky? Don’t you think that maybe there would be better light for that in the front room?” Steve asked as he peeked around the shower curtain. Bucky had just walked in with another hanging terrarium, spilling out with some kind of plant. Steve really wasn’t into learning the names of every plant out there--moss maybe? Ivy? Green plant spilling out of a glass orb.

 

Which was being hung up.

“No it’s better in here, it needs the humidity that your showers give off.” Bucky smirked as he pulled over the vanity chair to screw in a hook in the ceiling.

“My showers? You take way longer showers! Not to mention you would burn your skin if the water could come out hot enough,” Steve snipped back, ducking back into the shower stall--he did still have to wash the shampoo out of his hair.

“Oh really? Mister-hour-showers!” Steve heard Bucky climb down off the chair and over to the shower door. For a master assassin, Bucky could be VERY loud.

 

Steve didn’t mind it, Bucky was only really loud when he was having a good day. On bad days when Bucky only got up to water his plants and feed his goats, Bucky was the quietest being alive. Steve couldn’t hear him at all, even T’challa said he had problems locating Bucky on bad days. It’s also why Steve didn’t say anything about the plants that were slowly taking over their house; they gave Bucky something to do every day other than mope with his goats.

“I do not take hour showers!” Steve said, as Bucky stepped into the shower.

“Yes, you do,” Bucky said. “It’s ok babe, I still love you no matter how prune-ie you are.”

 

Today was a VERY good day then! Bucky couldn’t always take off his clothes in front of Steve, let alone step into the shower with him.

Steve couldn’t help it, he grabbed Bucky’s face, leaning in so their breath tangled between them, just centimetres away.

“Can I kiss you?” Steve whispered--he really wanted to but it was always Bucky’s decision. Bucky didn’t say anything, he just leaned in that last little bit to press their lips together.

 

Yup, today was a good day.

***

Steve should have known it wouldn’t last.

 

Two days later Steve woke to an empty bed. That in itself was not unusual, but the fact that Steve hadn’t heard Bucky get up is what gave it away. That, and the curtains weren’t open.

 

The plants in the bedroom were the ones that got moved and replaced the most often. On bad days, like today, Bucky wouldn’t open the curtains. If Steve wasn’t here then they stayed closed and the TWENTY THREE plants would die (generally) before the curtains opened again.

 

Steve rolled out of bed and got stabbed by the aloe vera plant that had overgrown right off the side of his nightstand. Steve hated that damned thing. Oddly enough it was the only plant that had been here since the beginning, somehow still living.

Naturally, Bucky named it Steve.

Steve quickly checked each plant's soil to see if they had been watered before he opened the curtains. None of them had been watered in what must have been days if how dry the soil was told him anything. It really didn’t--he was the ultimate plant killer--but he would water them anyways before he went for a run.

That run never happened.

 

Bucky was curled up on the couch with a hoard of pillows surrounding him, and blankets over that. The curtains were still closed and the TV was smashed. T’Challa would be pissed off at that.

“Buck?” Steve whispered. If he was sleeping, Steve didn’t want to wake him up, but a hand appeared, signing the word no. Bad, bad day then.

“The goats?”

 

-No- was signed again. Guess Steve was being a Sheppard today…was it a Sheppard if they were goats? This is why he was a city boy. Oh well, feeding them was a good arm workout.

 

***

 

The next day was no better.

 

***

Or the day after that.

 

That one may have been the worst yet. Bucky didn’t get out of bed, but he did smash PlantSteve’s pot. He wouldn’t let Steve anywhere in the room. Even Shuri got kicked out.

“You know I heard that having cat is even better than plants at helping someone who is depressed and has PTSD. Maybe you should get one!” Shuri suggested as she fiddled with something on the couch.

“A cat? Really?” Steve said. He had visions of a cat knocking all the plants off the shelves or going crazy with all the light that bounced around the rooms from the hanging terrariums and the prism terrariums that were lined in gold, or brass--yeah that would be fun with a cat.

“Well, dogs are also known to be very good, or you could get a therapy pony. But I don’t know if you want to clean up its messes in the house.”

 

Steve just stood there--she was joking, right?

 

Shuri looked back for just a second before her bracelet was raised and Steve’s picture was snapped. “Oh, he is so getting this!” With that Shuri bounced out of the room.

Thinking about it, a cat would be much better than a horse, and Steve was afraid if he didn’t get a cat then Shuri would get a horse.

 

With that Steve ran into town. He had seen the pet shelter there when Bucky and he went exploring. They would most likely have cats. Hopefully.

 

***

 

Steve had found the smallest kitten in the shelter, and his heart had melted. He hoped that Bucky would also love it. But either way it was never going back to the shelter, even if Bucky didn’t like the cute little thing, with its deep brown fur and its white markings around its eyes making it look like it had an exaggerated slanted eyes that drew you in until you were lost in the swirling brown-green-gold and blacks that were this little things eyes.

 

Steve was absolutely keeping it.

Like with everything Steve did, he thought about it as he was doing it, but his brain didn't really kick in until it was already done and he was standing at their door.

 

What if Bucky hated it? Steve couldn’t keep something that would make Bucky mad, or hateful! Bucky had enough hate in his life, he didn’t need Steve adding to it. But she was already adopted. He couldn’t take her back, especially so soon! It would be like telling a child “Ok you’re coming home with us, oh nope just kidding!” He couldn’t do it!

Oh- he also hadn’t watered the plants. Or put PlantSteve back onto the nightstand after he repotted it.

Without thinking about it Steve walked into the house, the little kitten still tucked against his chest. Steve strolled right into the kitchen where he scooped up the evil plant and took both it and kitty into the bedroom.

-Get out!- was signed lazily, if lazy was sticking up his hands signing and letting them flop back down on his chest…or was that Bucky’s head? It was hard to tell under the blanket cacoon.

“Just putting PlantSteve back,” Steve said, “Since you decided to throw him and I out today.” Steve was never sure when Bucky was like this if his jokes were taken as jokes or if they were taken seriously or if Bucky even heard him. He never got a response so he walked over and placed the little kitten on the bed before placing PlantSteve back on his nightstand, to stab him in the morning.

Steve watched as Bucky’s head popped out of the blankets to stare at the little kitten that was making its way across the bed.

-What’s that?- Bucky asked, drawing his body away from the creature without falling out of the bed.

“It was Shuri’s idea! She said that cats can help.”

-I have goats- Bucky signed, glaring at Steve and still trying to avoid the now playing kitten.

“Yes, but like today you didn’t get up to take care of them. I did, not that I mind! This little one will stay inside and relies on you, I mean at least the goats can find food if they want to. The cat will need you. Can you just give it a try? Please?”

 

Bucky raised an eyebrow but raised his hands.

\- L-E-T-I-T-I-A-

 

***

It was Steve’s turn to have a bad day.

 

Bucky was once again caring for his goats and taking Letitia with him, bringing new plants into the house much to Steve’s quiet disdain, but no more poked him on his bedside so he didn’t mind too much. Plus Bucky had seen on Dodo’s Instagram feed that there was a cat that went on hikes with its humans and Bucky had instantly gone out and gotten a leash and harness. Weirdly enough Letitia liked them. She would even bring them to Bucky when she really wanted to leave the house.

 

So Steve was eternally grateful to both Shuri and Letitia for taking some of the stress off him, but it did leave a space in his life where his emotions could creep in and leave him running around the field until he couldn’t feel his legs or the burn of his lungs or hold onto a thought for too long. Like today.

 

Hopefully he could run until the thoughts stopped all together.

Until then, Steve tried to think of other things, anything to make him move. He thought about the way Letitia would follow Bucky around. It was just the cutest thing; she'd sniff at all the plants as Bucky watered them, and ride the goats back as they followed Bucky to their trough.

 

Shuri absolutely loved Letitia and brought new cat toys almost every time she came over. This added new obstacles to Steve’s mornings, what with the new cat tree butted against the window, the little mice toys Letitia batted around at night (leaving them nowhere near the same spot as the night before). Plus Letitia herself had become an obstacle. Somehow she would just appear under someone’s foot and Steve was terrified of hurting her.

Which is exactly what sent him into today’s bad mood.

 

Last night Bucky and Steve had been curled up on the sofa watching a movie and when Steve had gone to get popcorn, he had stepped on poor Letitia’s tail. It had seemed to Bucky like such a small thing, Steve had barely actually got her and she was fine once Bucky had coerced her from her hiding spot. But Bucky also knew that the smallest things could set off so many others.

 

This is exactly what had happened. Steve had started to think about all the times someone had gotten hurt when he was so close to helping them but just couldn’t make it in time. The nightmare didn’t help.

Or the past few days in general. Steve just had not been feeling the greatest. Sure, the serum kept him from getting sick, but it did nothing to help his emotions. Hence the poor mood that had started off as just a woke-up-on-the-wrong-side-of-the-bed day and ended with three smashed pots, a briefly lost (but eventually found) goat, a broken tap, and Steve’s favourite shirt being ripped.

 

Bucky had laughed--he knew the more frustrated, flustered or mad Steve got, the more things that would break. Steve often forgot his strength when he was flustered, causing all sorts of mayhem that Bucky couldn’t help but laugh at. It usually made Steve at least crack a smile and calm down a little, but some days it just made it worse for Steve. Sadly yesterday had been one of those days.

 

Leaving today to go from bad to worse.

Steve was different than Bucky. When Steve has bad days, he doesn’t stay in bed or go mute. Instead, Steve would go out and run for hours, or hit the gym, or punch bags until his knuckles--or the bag--split. One thing they both had in common was they both forgot to eat. Where Bucky wasn’t using all that much energy, Steve burned through everything he had, often causing him to pass out.

 

Bucky was watching Steve run around the farm for the eighth time when Shuri was announced by the goats. They loved their Princess and always herded toward her baying for her attention, which of course got everyone else’s attention.

“What brings you here today? Come to spray more Febreze on me?”

“You hadn’t showered in a week, it was a very valid response,” Shuri said. “But no, not today. Today I’m here to see my alter ego.” She walked right past Bucky and to Sam the Goat to scoop Letitia off his back. Letitia just purred and snuggled into Shuri’s shoulder, letting her ears swivel as she heard Steve make yet another lap.

“How many is that?” Shuri was well aware of how Steve dealt with his bad days, having to have fixed him up a time or two when he went just a little too far punching things.

“9, he just got started.”

“Maybe you should get him a dog. That way he has someone to run with, but it might curb his need to run excessively when he sees the dog getting tired,” Shuri suggested, never taking her eyes off Letitia.

 

Bucky just stood there, trying to imagine if Steve would actually stop if his dog started to trail off, or would the dog keep going until it hurt itself? Would it decide to run away when Steve just kept running, or would this dog pull him out of his own head and make him slow down, a jog just for jogging's sake, not a way to punish himself.

“If a dog isn’t his thing you could always go for a monkey! It would just hang onto his shoulder! Wouldn’t that be cute? Steve Rogers, Captain America, with a monkey hanging off his shoulder, maybe grooming his hair!” Shuri started to giggle to herself at the image, and apparently Letitia agreed as she butted her head against Shuri’s hands before rolling over to bat at them.

 

“No monkeys!” Bucky snapped. As cute as the picture would be, he really didn’t want a monkey in the house. Plus he was sure they ate more than just bananas and he really didn’t want to find out what or how much. Or if they really flung what came out after they were done with the food.

 

A dog would be easy and safe enough.

***

Bucky slipped out the next day. Steve was still sleeping, or rather passed out, in their bed. He had run from 8 in the morning right up until 11 at night where he had collapsed in the jungle. Bucky had spent almost two hours looking for Steve. That’s when he decided maybe a dog would be a great idea--at the very least he could train it to find Steve when this happened.

So he slipped out of their bed, hoping Steve would stay asleep at least until Bucky got back. Steve’s bad days were never single days. They tended to linger, but at least by the second or third day Bucky could usually convince him to stay in the house, maybe bake with him instead of working out again (maybe even convince Steve to eat the baked good).

 

Plus it would be easier to surprise Steve with the dog if Steve was still asleep.

Bucky really didn’t know where to go to get a dog. Did he want one from a breeder? Where would he even find one--hell he didn’t even know what breed to get! Or what age he wanted. Maybe a puppy who would have the energy to keep up with Steve, or maybe an adult that still had energy but needed more downtime, or an oldie who would just want to snuggle. And size, what size did he get?

 

He should have texted Shuri, or at least brought his phone so he could search it, but like the senior he pretended he wasn’t, he had forgotten it. Maybe he could go to the animal shelter, where at the very least he could talk to the caregivers to see what they had to say. That at least sounded like a plan to Bucky.

With a destination in mind, Bucky wandered off to find Stevie a dog.

***

Bucky almost felt guilty about who he had found. He hadn’t meant to find the cutie but one look at his big molten silver eyes and that was it. He quickly filled out the papers and paid the money, before slipping the collar over the speckled neck.

“Ok, you have to be nice! He’s not having a great day. And you have to be nice to Letitia, she’s a good girl but she will swipe at you if you annoy her. I don’t want to see a cut across your adorable nose, alright?” Bucky would almost feel crazy, except he already talked to Letitia, so one more fuzzy listener wasn’t really a bother to him.

When they got to the bedroom, Bucky could hear the sheets ruffling around. So he quietly slipped in, thankful they had cut Micha’s nails so they didn’t click against the floor. (Yes he already named the dog. After the pet rock named Rock from the 30s, Steve was never allowed to name things again.)

 

When Bucky walked closer he was happy to see it had just been Steve rolling over and not Steve in a fit of a nightmare that had caused the rustling. Sometimes Steve couldn’t get out of his dreams and Bucky would have hated for him to have suffered while he was out trying to get someone who would help.

 

But it was even better than Steve not having a nightmare: Steve had rolled to face away from the door!

 

Bucky lead Micha closer to the bed and motioned for him to hop up. Bucky was surprised that he did so immediately, like he knew what Bucky was talking about even though they hadn’t known each other twenty minutes ago.

Bucky almost laughed, as Micha instantly curled up to Steve’s back, pressing his long body tight against Steve’s. If it wouldn’t have woken Steve, Bucky would have laughed. Yeah, a dog was a good idea. He would have to remember to thank Shuri.

“Buck, your shoulders diggin’,” Steve mumbled.

 

Bucky didn’t say anything, he really wanted to see what Steve would do. And of course, Micha didn’t seem to care if his leg was digging into Steve’s back, which was evident by Micha snuggling farther into Steve. Bucky understood that. Steve felt nice.

“Buck!” Steve groaned. He turned over with a huff, only to be met with a tongue swiping over his whole face!

Ok, not going to lie, Bucky laughed. Steve’s face was just too funny! His mouth popped open only to immediately snap closed as Micha’s tongue swiped out again. His eyes where huge! He had snapped his head back in hopes of getting away from the beasts tongue but Micha just followed.

“Bucky who is this? And what is it doing in our bed?”

 

Bucky almost laughed again as Steve slowly unfolded himself from the bed, never taking his eyes off Micha.

“That’s Micha. He’s a Catahoula Leopard Weimaraner mix, so he has lots of energy and will be happy to run with you.”

 

Steve just stared at Bucky, his eyes becoming a skeptical laser burning into Bucky’s skull. “You talked to Shuri yesterday didn’t you.”

 

Bucky nodded as he moved to sit on the bed, allowing Micha to drape around his body to put his head in Bucky’s lap.

“Why a dog?”

“Because you aren’t exactly a cat person.” As if to prove his point, Letitia jumped up on Steve’s shoulders, causing Steve to flinch just a little bit as her claws dug into his shirt and pricked the skin beneath.

 

He had gotten better but he still flinched. Bucky didn’t flinch even from the start, maybe because he seemed to have a sixth sense for Letitia, or maybe it was because she always jumped up on his left shoulder where he had no feeling, and couldn’t feel the little pricks Letitia’s nails caused.

“I love Letitia, she’s a great cat!” Steve said, “She doesn’t break anything, she is great with the goats, and she kills the mice we sometimes get.” And she stays with you when you need someone but won’t let me near, Steve inwardly said, and hoped his face wouldn’t give his thoughts away. Natasha always said he was terrible at hiding things, and Bucky could read him like a book.

Bucky didn’t say anything. He knew why Steve had gotten Letitia for him; he didn’t begrudge Steve for it. He was actually quite happy about it. She really did do him a world of good, which is exactly why Bucky had gotten Micha for Steve. Hopefully, Micha would be just as good for Steve as Letitia was for him.

Instead, Bucky just held out his hand until Steve relented and gave his own. Bucky gently pulled him forward until Steve rested between his legs. Bucky gently turned Steve’s hand over until it rested against Micha’s head (who had helpfully raised his head to meet their hands).

Bucky knew Steve wasn’t afraid of dogs or really any animal, he just really wasn’t around them. He had grown up in Brooklyn where the only people who had dogs didn’t come around to where Steve lived, and all he saw were abused strays that ran from you the second they saw you. The only cats Steve had been around were alley cats, and if you got too close they fought back. Then he moved back to New York and passed dogs on his way around but still really didn’t have time to interact with them. Even when he got to DC and Wakanda the only animals Steve really dealt with was goats.

 

So Bucky understood Steve’s apprehension about going towards such a large dog, but if he got them to be friendly he knew they would get along beautifully.

Sure enough, as soon as Steve touched that soft fur, he bent down to nuzzle into Micha’s face.

Micha happily stepped forward, smashing his face into Steve’s.

***

 

Steve and Micha took to each other like fire to dry wood.

 

It became a very usual site to see Steve and Micha walking beside each other, or taking early runs or tending to the goats together. Just like it was normal to see Bucky with Letitia on his shoulder or trotting behind him swiping at his heels. It became a very popular sight to watch Steve playing fetch, or tug of war, or being tackled by Micha.

 

The last became a village favourite. Often times the kids would play with Micha while Steve helped Bucky, making sure to keep him away long enough that when Micha finally saw Steve he would run full speed into him. Steve let him take him down and lick all over his face. Those were the highlight of Bucky’s days, seeing Steve laughing and smiling, just happy to have someone he connected with on a deeper level than even Bucky and Steve had.

Steve’s bad days still had Bucky worried.

 

Some days, Steve would run so long that Micha would have to quit, lay down for a little before he could get back up and run after Steve again, barking the whole time. It may have been the only thing that got Steve to finally stop. It would embarrass Steve so much, Micha running after him barking, scaring the goats, or at least making them baa in annoyance, which of course made all the kids, and most of the adults turn to see what was going on. Steve hated to be embarrassed and would often stop running and usher Micha back into the house.

 

Bucky always gave Micha an extra treat on those days. Anything that could get Steve to stop deserved an extra treat. It helped that Micha also learned to track by scent so when Steve passed out during one of Micha's break, Bucky just had to give the command and off he would go, leading Bucky right to Steve.

Of course, Micha was not a dumb dog. He quickly learned all of Steve’s quirks: run too long, embarrass him by barking. Going into a dark mental place, bodily drag him outside and bring him all the toys. Start flinching away from friendly touches, push up into Steve’s side, allowing him to feel his presence but also get in between people and Steve so Steve didn’t have to worry about their touches.

Bucky noticed that after missions were the worst.

 

Steve sometimes couldn’t stand to even have Bucky touch him. If a stranger tried to touch Steve he would flinch and suddenly move away from them, curling into himself and often refusing to talk afterwards.

 

But Micha never got pushed away. It was almost like Steve didn’t register that Micha was pushing against his legs, getting between Steve and strangers but at the same time, Steve would instantly drop his hand onto Micha’s head. It always made his shoulders drop just a few millimetres, and Steve’s breath always got just that little bit deeper.

 

So Bucky could never begrudge Micha. If Micha could get Steve to relax then Bucky was all for it.

 

Plus Bucky had Letitia--who was he to get mad when he did the same thing with her?

***

 

Steve sometimes couldn’t be around people.

 

Bucky had watched as Steve struggled to go on his run for fear of running into someone, of having to talk, and hold the persona that was Captain America. He couldn’t hold the image, he couldn’t pretend, but he couldn’t let the person see anything that wasn’t the strong image that propaganda and years of stories had created.

Much like today.

Steve had gotten up that morning, showered, and pulled on his running clothes, only to stop dead at the door.

 

Bucky had woken up when Steve had gotten out of bed. Today was a fine day for him, so he shuffled his way into the living room and sat on the couch with Letitia snuggled against his chest, watching as Steve’s hand shook inches away from the doorknob.

“Steve? What’s on your mind?” Bucky whispered, waving at Micha to get closer to Steve, as he was standing a little way back, his head whipping between the two. He took a few steps closer to Steve when Steve’s hand dropped a little farther away from the doorknob but started shaking harder, the shake travelling up into Steve’s arm into his shoulders.

Steve opened his mouth but nothing came out.

 

His mind was a jumbled mess. He wanted to go running, his body burned and itched to run, to feel the burn in his muscles as he pushed them too far. He wanted to feel the heat against his face, somehow still hotter than he would get running.

 

He needed to run!

 

But what if the kids saw him? What if like last time he had been assaulted with memories, one that had forced tears to leak from his eyes? They couldn’t see him like that. That wasn’t Captain America, that was barely Steve Rogers. He didn’t know who he had become now. He wasn’t Captain America but he didn’t feel like Steve Rogers, big or small, he was just a…a thing. Lost.

Steve jumped, his fist swinging out without his say.

 

Bucky stood there with his right hand stretched out, having pulled it back after he had touched Steve’s shoulder to try and bring him out of wherever he had gone in his head.

“Sorry! I’m sorry Buck, I…I didn’t mean to…I..I…” Steve trailed off. Micha whined and pushed into Steve’s side, nudging him away from the door and closer to Bucky.

 

Bucky just smiled sadly, taking Steve’s hand and leading him to the couch. Micha followed, climbing up onto Steve’s lap like he was a lap dog and not a hundred-pound beast. Steve didn’t notice he was once again lost in his mind.

 

Bucky just wrapped his arms around Steve and pulled him into his chest, surprised that he didn’t get swiped at again.

 

***

 

Some days, nights were the worst part.

Steve always went to their bed, but sometimes Bucky just couldn’t, it was too soft, too big, just too much. On these nights Bucky was very thankful for Micha always following Steve to bed. Even if when they all slept in the bed Micha and Letitia would somehow grow three times their size and make their big bed seem smaller then the single Bucky and Steve shared before the war.

 

It was a good thing.

 

Micha would wake Steve if he was having a bad dream. He would just lay on top of Steve. Bucky had watched one of the first times; Micha had just let his body sink onto Steve’s, pressing Steve into the bed. Steve almost instantly calmed, wrapping his arms around Micha. Bucky had to admit it was one thing Letitia couldn’t do for him, but Micha happily took over the duty.

 

Except when he had to wake Bucky. Micha would stand off to the side and start whining, slowly calling Bucky out of his dreams instead of laying on him. (The one time Micha had tried that, Bucky had almost thrown him across the room; luckily Steve had woken at Bucky’s trashing and grabbed Micha before Bucky had completed the toss). Once he was awake, Letitia would then come in and comfort Bucky, closely followed by Steve and Micha. Of course, Letitia and Bucky would always lay on Steve after Micha had calmed him down.

It somehow became a little less difficult for them to go to bed every night. Bucky started spending fewer nights on the couch, or the floor, and more in bed. Steve had more nights that he slept peacefully. They were by no means perfect and night time was still the worst for both of them, but having Micha and Letitia made the night just that little bit better for all of them.

 

***

 

When they had bad days, Bucky came out of his room with Letitia snuggled in his arms. Maybe he would snuggle on the couch, and maybe he wouldn’t talk for the day, but it was an improvement. He would at least water his plants as the day wore on.

 

When Steve had bad days, he wouldn’t run as far or as long, Micha running by him the whole time.

 

When they both had bad days, they would snuggle on the couch or both go for a run, with Letitia and Micha watching together from the porch.

Every day, the good, the bad, the ugly, the beautiful--it all ended with Bucky and Steve sitting on the couch, Micha laying across both their laps and Letitia laying on top Micha’s back. Just one squishy pile of warm sappy goodness.

This is how they could spend the rest of their lives. Snuggled together under pets, surrounded with plants, and snuggled to the one they both love most.


End file.
